WESTPORT, May 20, 2025 – True friendship never really dies, as its gifts live on forever. That’s certainly the case for Foley Mountain as it says goodbye to its longtime Friends group this spring.
Friends of Foley Mountain, a charitable group that has aided the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority's Westport site since 1996, announced in April it is disbanding after 29 years. Stable funding coupled with declining board member recruitment led to the difficult decision. But even in its absence, the group’s indelible mark can be found in every corner of the 800-acre conservation area.
In the mid-1990s, funding cuts threatened the future of Foley Mountain and its outdoor education programs. Foley’s live-in site supervisor and education manager Barry McQuay, along with his wife Peri, decided to take action. In February 1996, they hosted the inaugural Friends of Foley Mountain meeting at the Lion’s Den in Westport. It was meant to be exploratory to gauge community interest. But according to Peri, they were overwhelmed.
“The hall was packed. It was wintertime and there were people standing outside,” Peri said. “There was cheering and there was stamping. People really cared.”
Raising nearly $400,000 over the past three decades, the Friends have focused on providing tuition and bus subsidies for low-income families and schools to participate in outdoor education. They also leveraged their charitable status to help raise grants and funding for major infrastructure upgrades, including the accessible Spy Rock ramp, accessible washrooms and ramp at the Interpretive Centre, and the construction of solar-powered washrooms at the Silversides education site.
“I couldn’t even list all the things the Friends have supported us on,” said current site supervisor Rebecca Whitman. “They’ve been hugely supportive with providing extra resources like snowshoes and GPS units. They’ve helped families who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to come to the programs. All of those things have had a really huge impact.”
Whitman expressed heartfelt thanks to the committed volunteers who have dedicated years of their life supporting Foley Mountain and its programs.
“I am just so grateful to be part of a community that cares so deeply about its public resources, and about the next generation of stewards for this critical forest,” Whitman said. “The Friends have made a permanent impact on the Mountain while fostering a steady level of community support, and I am confident that is not going away.”
The Rideau Valley Conservation Authority sincerely thanks the Friends of Foley Mountain board members and the community that has supported the group for years. Going forward, Friends of Foley have graciously asked the RVCA’s charitable partner the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation to continue raising funds for Foley Mountain initiatives. An exclusive Foley Fund has been established to support a variety of programs, including outdoor education, land conservation or stewardship. Donations can be made at www.rvcf.ca or through CanadaHelps.org.
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